Sep 08, 2024

 

Living in Unconditional Love (183)

 

“Love flows from God to humans without effort:

As a bird glides through the air without moving its wings-

Thus, they go wherever they wish united in body and soul,

Yet separate in form.”

–Mechtild of Magdeburg

 

My wife Eileen died from esophageal cancer in February 2020 one year after being diagnosed, 60 years after we met on Long Island. Then my brother Tom became ill (not COVID), and I spent a total of six weeks being with him in Ohio, but he died in October 2020. My sister-in-law Sue Mahoney died from Covid-19 in January 2021. On top of it all stood the pandemic, locking everyone down almost two years. Covid has proved to be a persistent problem, and many of the long-term effects are quite serious, and it has proven much more serious than flu.

09/08/2024                                                    It seems like yesterday that the sweetcorn season started, and it is now over. I went Friday to pick up some more and the stand has been taken in, marking the end of the season. It was good while it lasted, and I will look forward to next year’s season.

LUMA is this weekend, and Barbara, Janet and my niece Tara came here Friday to see it. Barbara had to leave early Saturday as the fall play she helps direct and is stage manager had their first show on Saturday evening, but Janet and Tara stayed until Sunday. It was a real joy to sit in conversation with them at various times and we spent most of Saturday (sans Barbara who left early) visiting. Even though it rained much on Saturday, it stopped in the afternoon, so we had a BBQ for supper and the weather was good for LUMA that evening, but cool, in the very low 60s.

Guard rails were added to the steps on the new patio and that completes the patio. It does look nice and all who have seen it admire it. It is much more stable to move on or off the patio to or from the lawn with the new grading leading to the patio and the railings on the steps.

Tim H has adjusted the stonework (as it tends to slide on the banks during the winter) around the pond and is putting in new steps onto the dock, as the old ones have rotted out. Everything looks good, but I will have to see if the driveway could be recoated next year, as much has been scraped away by the snowplows.

Other than that, it has been a quiet week. My company meetings were held this week, and I stayed home and joined on the computer (or iPad).

I have found it is easy to commune with God in Nature, as the beauty presented to me daily is breathtaking; somehow, I have been blessed to have been able to spend most of my life surrounded by nature, both growing up and the past fifty-three years where I am today. I have been blessed with Eileen for 60 years, a wonderful family, friends, and feel the love that is so dominant in my life.

Meditation

 Gentle One, I have been gifted with unconditional love all my life. Even when I have failed love by my actions, the love in return has been brought me up short and helped in those times of struggle. My gratitude seems insufficient in comparison with all I have been given, even now, with good health and the abilities to still live alone and in joy with untold memories that fill my days, plus the constant joy of watching nature unfold each day and the joy of hobbies that keep me occupied.